"Dale" captures Earnhardt, warts and all

The Associated Press

Published Thursday, February 01, 2007

CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Nearly six years after his death, Dale Earnhardt's family is finally in total agreement about something: The biography "Dale" definitively captures the life of NASCAR's seven-time champion.

"I was amazed, blown away," Dale Earnhardt Jr. said of the movie, which opened this week. "Couldn't believe how good it turned out. It's to the point. It's perfect."

Produced by NASCAR Images and CMT Films and narrated by Paul Newman, the documentary allows Earnhardt to tell his own story.

Made with raw footage -- much of it long forgotten, some of it never before seen -- the film is spliced together around a reflective interview Earnhardt did one day while fishing on his North Carolina farm.

Using racing scenes, photos, present-day interviews and old family videos, the film chronicles Earnhardt's rise from an eighth-grade dropout living in a depressed mill town to a NASCAR hero.

He was killed on the last lap of the 2001 Daytona 500 at the age of 49.

"I was thinking 'What have I not seen? Am I just going to be sitting through a whole bunch of stuff I've already watched?" Earnhardt Jr. said.

"But all the footage that they got, the entire movie, I'd never seen any of it before. If it felt behind the scenes for me, imagine how it's going to feel for the fans."

"Dale" will be released as NASCAR moves across the country this season, opening in theaters near each week's race.

It will air on CMT later in the year and eventually be released on DVD.

The story traces Earnhardt's life from birth until death -- with a never-before-seen in-car camera shot from the second before he hits the wall in Daytona -- and doesn't sugarcoat the controversies or criticisms that shadowed his career and his personal life.

Video footage shows the strained relationship he had with a young Dale Jr., who desperately longed for his father's attention but often was squeezed out of the spotlight.

But there are tender moments, too, including a scene where Earnhardt tries to teach his son to water ski and another where a young Junior pretends to interview his father in Victory Lane.

There's a part in which Earnhardt professes his adoration for Teresa, and, after often failing as a father to his first three children, scenes show him flourishing in the role with youngest daughter Taylor Nicole.

Qualifying change

CONCORD, N.C. -- NASCAR changed its Nextel Cup past champions provisional Wednesday to limit it to only six uses per season.

There had previously been no limit to how many times a past Cup champion could use the provisional to ensure a spot in the field each week.

The provisional was set aside for the 43rd spot in the race to the most recent former champion who did not qualify based on speed.

Now, a driver can only use the spot six times in a year, and the limit also applies to the entire team so that a car owner can't use multiple past champions in the course of one season.

"As NASCAR seeks to place more emphasis on competition, we have decided the time is right to limit the number of provisionals allowed," said Robin Pemberton, NASCAR's competition director. "We believe this revision brings the provisional policy in line with the continued growth of the sport."

The rule change will most affect Dale Jarrett, the 1999 Cup champion, who is racing for a new team this season that isn't carrying over any points from last year. If he must make the race on speed at times this year, he won't be able to rely on the past champions provisional to carry him through the season.